Dimitri Vs Adrian
by YamiMagicianGirl
Summary: Rose Hathaway faces a dilemma. Dimitri and Adrian both love her, but hate each other. It's every man for himself to win her over... comedy/drama/romance and an epic love triangle! better summary inside!
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! :D Guess what? I'm alive! **

**But my laptop isnt... :( ive lost my draft of the new hungry for you chapter, so i decided to start something completely different. THIS! :D its been kicking about in my head for a while, so i decided to start it.**

**I WILL update hungry for you soon, for those of you wondering! **

**And i dont really know where this story is going exactly... but it'll be good!**

_*****DIMITRI VS. ADRIAN SUMMARY*****_

_**A month has passed since Rose turned Dimitri back into a Dhampir.**_

_**But now she faces a dilemma.**_

_**She's dating Adrian but she loves Dimitri, and they both love her, which doesn't make things any easier.**_

_**After a bit of a toss-up, Adrian breaks up with Rose, but soon realises it's a mistake. Now it's every man for himself as the guys compete against each other to woo her back.**_

_**Comedy/romance/drama…**_

_**And an epic love triangle! :D**_

**Enjoy!**

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><p><span>CHAPTER 1<span>

RPOV

Dimitri was being released today.

I was on my way across Court to meet him, and help him move his things into the apartment he had been appointed… which just so happened to be conveniently located next to mine.

It was early and the normally busy plaza was almost empty, save for the odd person here and there.

_Good_, I thought. Dimitri didn't need people gawking at him.

They still thought he was Strigoi. How, I didn't know – he looked completely normal to me. Same tanned skin, same long-ish hair that hung around his gorgeous face, same amazing, hypnotic, warm brown eyes that I had missed so much…

Yeah, I guess I was still in love with Dimitri after all this time. Not that I could tell anyone, since I was dating Adrian. It was only now that I realised I shouldn't have made that promise to him – 'I'll give you a chance when I get back.' There had been an implied 'if' in that sentence, and at the time, I didn't think I would need to worry about it. Surely, I would either get killed or turned?

Apparently not.

I mean, don't get me wrong, Adrian was a really nice guy… but he just wasn't Dimitri. Not that it mattered, because I think Dimitri had moved on from me anyway.

I sighed as I slammed the elevator button with my fist. I hadn't seen him for almost two weeks now, but it wouldn't make a difference anyway. Something had changed in him, and it was like he didn't see me the same way any more.

He hadn't actually said anything to my face, but I just knew by the way he acted around me: flinching when I touched him, purposely avoiding me, spacing out when I spoke…

I didn't even know what I had done.

My breathing was getting increasingly laboured as the elevator crawled upwards. I was so frustrated with myself.

_How could you let this happen, Rose? _Some inner voice chastised me. _How could you alienate Dimitri like that? _

I shook my head. I didn't need this right now. Facing him would be hard enough. Would he even accept me? Because, let's be honest, I was being pretty pathetic. I had volunteered to help him move his small collection of belongings across Court just so I could spend time with him.

What was wrong with me?

The doors slid open with a thud and I traipsed down the hallway, being careful not to touch the walls as I passed. A layer of grime and dirt covered them, and for some reason, this shocked me. I guess it shouldn't have, because technically, Dimitri was still a 'prisoner.'

I grimaced just thinking his name. This was going to be so…

"Roza!" he cried gleefully, pulling the door back before I had even knocked.

"Uh… Hi Dimitri…" I stammered under his chocolaty gaze. What happened to the awkwardness?

"I've missed you…so much." he said under his breath, turning to lead me into the tiny room.

I wondered whether I was supposed to hear that as I followed him to a small stack of boxes against one wall. I couldn't understand why he was so cheerful all of a sudden.

"This is it?" I asked, eyeing the pile sceptically. Only eight boxes. They weren't even big ones.

He nodded, pointing to each one in turn. "Those two are clothes, that one's got electrical appliances in it, that one's mugs and plates and such and those two are random furniture…

"Wait, what about the other two?" I asked, going to lift the flap of the one closest to me.

"That one's just…" He caught my hand as if to pull it back… but he didn't.

We both froze. My skin felt like it was on fire where he was touching me. I wasn't at all unfamiliar with the feeling; it used to happen all the time. But it had been so long since then.

"That's just… just…" Dimitri stammered again, eyes fixed on our hands. "It's um… ah… uh…"

Suddenly, his eyes lit up with recognition. "Western novels… those are western novels…" his tone had changed from relieved to sheepish.

I grinned and squeezed his hand. "Only you Dimitri, only you."

He chuckled and surveyed the stack before us. "Should we make a start?"

"I guess." I agreed, gently prying my hand from his reluctantly. He immediately lifted the biggest box – full of books – as if it weighed nothing.

"Dimitri, you're going to hurt your back-"

"You can take that one, Rose." He interrupted, pointing to the smallest box, which apparently had clothes in it. I ignored him and opted for the second box of books.

He frowned. "_I'm_ going to hurt _my_ back?"

"If you get a big box, I get a big box." I pouted, bottom lip jutting out.

"Nice to see you've grown up, Roza." He said seriously, walking out of the room. I just caught the massive grin on his face as he turned the corner before I ran out after him, which proved to be quite difficult with the box in my arms.

We elbowed each other playfully as the elevator descended to the ground floor, and teased each other mercilessly as we walked to his new apartment. I liked it when Dimitri was like this. I mean, I liked his serious side too, but the fun side was… different.

"So, are your arms sore yet?" he asked with a playful smirk.

"Nope!" I laughed, skipping on ahead of him to the elevator in my building.

His expression turned serious. "I still don't think you should be carrying such a heavy box…"

I snorted. "Comrade, you of all people should know that one box is nothing for me."

He shook his head as the elevator doors slid shut, and we began to trundle upwards. "As your mentor-"

"_Former_ mentor!" I interrupted.

"As your _former_ mentor, it is within my right to worry about you."

The doors slid open again, but neither of us moved. After a heavy silence, I stepped into the hallway. "You're seriously worried about me carrying a box?" I asked, laughing internally at how ridiculous it sounded.

Dimitri stepped around me and stopped outside his apartment. He produced a key from his pocket and quickly unlocked the door. Just before he went inside, he turned to look deep into my eyes. "I always worry about you, Roza."

Gobsmacked, I followed him robotically. I was definitely missing something. The last time I had seen him, it was all awkward eye contact and monosyllable answers… and now he was acting like seeing me had made his day. Maybe I'd fallen into a coma and missed a couple weeks somewhere. Or I'd been abducted by aliens for testing. That actually sounded pretty cool.

I shook my head in disbelief at my farfetched theories and crossed the threshold into Dimitri's new home. As I looked around, I couldn't help but compare it to his old apartment. This one was clean, airy and bright. The last place had the feeling of a prison cell, which I suppose it was.

I laughed and set the box down as I realised something that I should have already known. "Your apartment's identical to mine."

Dimitri cast me a sidelong glance. "All the apartments in this _building_ are identical to yours, Roza."

I waved my hand dismissively and walked out. "Whatever."

He followed me, and we gradually built up a routine: walk to the old apartment, take a box, walk back, drop it off, and start again. It took us all of ten minutes to transport seven of the boxes to Dimitri's new apartment. There was only one left and I was determined to get it, because he had taken two at once so, even though we had made the same number of trips, he had actually taken one extra box.

I really am too competitive for my own good.

We jogged across Court this time, still chatting casually. For some reason, it made me sad to be with him. I kept thinking about how things used to be between us, back at the academy. _Those times are over, Rose_, I sighed internally. _You're with Adrian now._

"Rose, listen, I-" Dimitri said suddenly, blushing as he stopped mid-sentence. "Never mind…"

"What?" I pressed, raising my eyebrows.

"Nothing…" he murmured, eyes never rising from the ground as he slowed to walking pace.

"Okay," I grinned, suddenly remembering the last box sitting all alone in his apartment. Without another word I took off sprinting, leaving a very confused Russian behind me.

I was waiting for the elevator – box in hand – when the doors opened to reveal Dimitri, arms crossed. "I knew that's what you were doing." He sighed, reaching for the box.

I held it away from him and headed for the far corner of the small elevator. He pouted and pressed the ground floor button with his thumb.

"… so stubborn." I heard him mutter as the doors opened. I shifted the box to one hand and smacked him upside the head as I passed.

"What was that for?"

"You called me stubborn!" I yelled, pretending to sound offended as I stalked off.

To my dismay, he didn't shout after me, and I couldn't hear his footsteps pursuing me. Maybe he had taken my smack to heart. I was just about to turn when familiar arms encircled me and plucked the box out of my hands. I screamed from the shock and spun in Dimitri's arms. I was now standing with my back against the box, pressed against his chest with his arms around me.

Silence settled between us, and I struggled to form coherent thoughts as I fell under the trance of Dimitri's eyes. Without meaning to, I tilted my head up to his as he leaned down to me. His lips were mere centimetres from mine. I closed my eyes and…

I could feel Dimitri lifting the box over my head. I opened my eyes slowly to find him grinning, though his eyes looked dazed and almost… wistful. Without saying anything, he hoisted the box into his arms and walked away.

I was almost jogging to keep up with his long stride, still reeling from our almost-kiss and what it meant. Did it mean, despite his strange behaviour, that he still loved me?

_Obviously not_, I told myself, _he_ _was the one that pulled away._

I decided not to ask him about it, and he certainly didn't say anything to me. There was a tiny grin pulling at the side of his mouth, and I occupied myself with wondering what he had to be happy about. Frowning, I turned to ask him about it, but promptly noticed that it had disappeared.

I turned my eyes back to the ground.

We made it up the elevator and through Dimitri's front door in silence. I inched toward the door carefully and finally turned to look at him. He was leaning against the wall, watching me with the same tiny smile.

"I guess I'll get going…"

He cleared his throat and regarded me soberly. "I'm so sorry about that Rose… I… I don't know what came over me. I just- You're just so-" he stammered. I had never heard him so lost for words.

"Don't worry about it. We were just… caught up in the moment." I told him, not bothering to mention that I wasn't just caught up in that moment; I was caught up in _every_ moment that I spent with him.

"See you later, I guess." I called, stepping outside. "I'm next door if you need anything."

He gave a small wave as I shut the door.

Wrapped up on my sofa, I took a moment to reflect on what I had just done.

I had almost kissed Dimitri.

_I'm such a bad girlfriend. I don't deserve Adrian_.

To make myself feel better, I thought back over my relationship with him. I was trying to find a good memory, something fun that we had done together, something to remind me why I was with him and not Dimitri… I came up with hardly anything.

That's when I realised. I was with him and not Dimitri because the latter didn't want me, and I had promised Adrian a chance. One chance didn't seem so bad at the time, but now I yearned for my old, familiar relationship with Dimitri.

_Rose!_ I scolded myself. _Stop thinking about him!_

I tried to think of something… anything… that Adrian and I had done together. There was that time he took me out to dinner at a really expensive restaurant in Court, and the time – at my request – he took me rock-climbing, and that one time we had a picnic in my apartment because it was raining outside.

After another few minutes, I had thought of a few other things… but nothing all that special. I got up to make myself some coffee and find a jacket. I set the kettle to boil and hunted through my closet for something warm to wear. I pulled on a long, loose cardigan over my sweats and t-shirt and headed back out to the kitchen to get my coffee.

Just as I sat down on the sofa, someone knocked the door.

"Come in!" I yelled, wondering if Dimitri needed something already.

The door opened and Adrian walked in.

"Hello Little Dhampir." He greeted, coming to sit down beside me.

I leaned over to kiss him. "Hello Adrian," I grinned and held up my cup. "Want some coffee?"

He shook his head seriously. "No thanks, uh… I actually came to talk to you about something…"

"I figured." I replied, setting my mug down and shifting closer to him. "What is it?"

"Listen, I don't think this is working…"

"What? Why?" I cried.

"I saw you with Belikov earlier." He said bluntly.

I winced. "I was just helping him move his stuff!"

"No Rose, you weren't." he whispered. "You almost kissed him!" he cried, voice getting louder.

"That's not true!"

"Is there something going on with you two? Tell me the truth!" he yelled.

"No Adrian, of course there isn't!"

He looked at me long and hard before nodding slowly. "I'm sorry, but I can't do this any more."

"Do what?" I asked, voice dropping to a broken whisper.

"Live in Belikov's shadow. I can't beat him. You've got him on a pedestal and me in your arms!" he shouted, tears springing in his eyes. With those last powerful words, Adrian Ivaskov left my apartment, slamming the door behind him.

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><p><strong>So... that was interesting, right? Dimitri still loves Rose, Adrian still loves Rose... oh dear :**

**Let the games begin! :D**

**anyways, because i wrote this for you guys, you have to do one thing...**

**R E V I E W! :D pleasepleaseplease!**

**If i get 10+ reviews, i'll update this after i finish the new hungry for you chapter! if not, ill have to ud after i've updated hungry for you, game night, crossed wires AND my knight in shining armour... which could take a VERY long time!**

**Best review gets the next chapter dedicated to them! :D**

**Annie x**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello again! **

**So, I got 11 reviews for this chapter, meaning a fast update! Lucky for you guys! :D**

**Thank you very much to everyone who reviewed: Nicia, LuPeters, emo is luv, northmanlvr, RANDOM COOKIE NINJA, VampzRsexy, PrincessRedfern, DXR, Sarah Ozera, and xXshortandsweetXx! XD**

**Also, i know that some of you really want it to be RxD and some want RxA... which is why im asking you to vote! Personally, I much prefer RxD, so if it's left to me, that's what's going to happen. From this chapter on, I'd like if you could tell me in a review (or pm) who'd you'd rather see Rose with... and you can do it every chapter, if you want... :D**

**One more thing, and then I'll let you get on with the story (I dont know if anyone's even reading this really long a/n!) I know that some of you are thinking, 'its not fair on adrian' or 'rose should stop being a bitch and just pick one of the guys' or whatever... I'd like to make one thing clear! Though this chapter doesnt actually support this point, this story is a COMEDY! If you dont read between the lines too much, I think it'll be pretty good!**

**The aim of this chapter is to show both guys' point of view, and maybe you can all sympathise with them... :)**

**This chapter is dedicated to PrincessRedfern, because your review made me smile! :D**

**Now, after that frighteningly long a/n, we can finally read the story! Enjoyy..! :D**

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><p>CHAPTER 2 – DIMITRI VS ADRIAN<p>

DPOV

"I'm so sorry about that Rose… I… I don't know what came over me. I just- You're just so-" I stammered. I wished with all my heart that I could finish those sentences, tell her the truth. _I don't know what came over me. I just couldn't stay away from you any more. You're just so beautiful, so amazing. I'm sorry I ever let you go._

"Don't worry about it. We were just… caught up in the moment." Rose answered. I refrained from wincing and let my gaze drop to the ground. Of course we were just 'caught up in the moment'. _Get a grip of yourself… she has a boyfriend!_ I scolded myself.

"See you later, I guess." she called, stepping outside. "I'm next door if you need anything."

I just barely lifted my hand to wave as she shut the door.

The day had started off so well. I felt on top of the world knowing I would see Roza again after so long… but it had pretty much gone to the dogs after our almost-kiss. I couldn't describe how thrilled I was when she looked like she was going to kiss me, but I had to break it off. My mother had raised me to be a gentleman, and stealing another man's girlfriend was certainly not abiding by that rule.

The worst part was that I knew it was my fault that she had drifted away from me.

The stark, empty room seemed to blur around the edges as I spaced out, thinking back to yesterday.

_I was on my shift, like I always seemed to be._

_Maybe that's why Rose doesn't love me? Because I don't have enough time for her? Maybe? I tried to convince myself, but it wasn't working._

_I knew why Rose didn't love me. I had pushed her away since I got back… for two main reasons. One, because I couldn't stand seeing her after what I had done to her, and two, because she was with Adrian. When I'd heard that particular piece of news, I felt like my heart had been torn into a million tiny pieces and glued back together. I often wondered if he knew just how lucky he was._

_Speak of the devil, I thought. Literally._

_I turned the corner into the main courtyard slowly, my gaze swiveling automatically to scan the grounds. I just happened to notice Adrian and Rose sitting on the bench opposite the church, laughing and talking. How I wished I was him…_

_It was at that very moment, as she scooted into Adrian's reach with a grin, that I realized two things. The first was that Rose really did love him, no matter how much my mind tried to deny it. It depressed me to think that she had moved on, but I couldn't possibly blame her for it. It was my own fault for shunning her in the first place._

_I desperately wished that I could go back and change that. _

_The second thing I realized as I studied her was that no matter how hard I tried, no matter how much space I put between us, no matter how much time passed…_

_She would always be the love of my life._

_Because, when I pictured the future, she was always there. When I pictured the woman I would spend the rest of my life with, she had deep brown eyes and long, dark hair. When I pictured someone telling me they loved me, it was accompanied by a grin and 'comrade.' At the risk of sounding like a bad movie, I literally couldn't imagine my life without her._

_And that's when I had my third epiphany of the day._

_I longed to be the one sitting on that bench next to Rose, to even just be closer to her than I was now. With that, I finally grasped what my heart had been trying to tell me all along._

_I couldn't ignore her any more. It hurt too much._

_END FLASHBACK_

Tears pricked in my eyes as my vision swam back into focus, and the walls stopped spinning. I took a few shaky steps forward, eventually making it to the wall that separated my apartment from Rose's. My shoulder hit it with a thud, but I ignored the pain and slid to the floor. There, sprawled in a clumsy heap, I thought long and hard about my life.

Now, if you asked someone, they'd probably tell you that the most important people in their life were their family, their friends and their partner.

My thoughts drifted to my own family. They were in Russia, and I hadn't been over to see them since I'd moved to America. I felt horrible about it, and I missed them terribly, but my job wasn't something that you could really work around. On second thoughts, they thought I was still a Strigoi. I decided to put that particularly awkward visit off for some other time.

I ran my hand over my hair roughly. Friends were a discomfited issue for me. I didn't really have any before I met Rose. Sure, there were plenty of people that I respected, but I had no-one that I could tell everything to, like I had with Ivan.

Until I met Rose. She made me feel so at ease, so… truly happy, for want of a better word. And I gradually became friends with her friends. This is where it got awkward.

Rose's friends were incredibly protective of her, and having broken her heart, I was sort of on their hit list. So for the time being, I didn't really have anyone I could call a friend.

That brought me onto the last – and most important – aspect of my social life.

Partner. Or… former partner, in this case.

I couldn't bring up words to describe how distressed I was over this. I don't know, I guess I'd always thought that our relationship was for keeps. And it was. But I had completely botched that when I'd dropped the bomb on Rose a few weeks ago.

'_Love fades, mine has.'_

It didn't matter whether I died tomorrow or when I was ninety, I would never, _ever_ forgive myself for saying that. That day… that day was a low point in my life. The lowest in fact. Watching as Rose's face fell, as the tiny glimmer of hope in her eyes faded, watching as she ran from the church, no doubt crying her eyes out...

That was too much. I knew that if someone else had done that to her, I would've wanted to kill them without pausing to think. In my eyes, Rose shouldn't even have forgiven me for that. Of course I was glad she had, but that didn't mean I thought I deserved it. I was-

My mental babble cut off as a yell resonated from somewhere in Rose's apartment, followed by a door opening. I tried not to listen, but I knew by the deep voice that it was Adrian. Without warning, another cry made its way to my ears. It was Rose. I couldn't hear exactly what she was saying, and to be honest, I didn't want to know. Anything that went on between her and Adrian was none of my business.

But that didn't mean I couldn't help but hear the absolute silence from next door. For a few seconds anyway.

A deep voice let out a strangled cry, which I deemed to be Adrian. Rose answered him, and when he replied, I finally figured out what they were talking about.

"_Is there something going on with you two? Tell me the truth!"_

I felt like dying. He'd seen us, and now he was breaking up with Rose.

And it was all my fault.

Quiet murmurs followed, and then one last, poignant line found its way to me before the door slammed.

_"Live in Belikov's shadow. I can't beat him. You've got him on a pedestal and me in your arms!"_

Wait, that didn't mean…?

APOV

I felt horrible, but it had to be done. If Rose still loved Belikov, then there was nothing I could do about it, but I certainly wasn't going to wait around and get strung along like a complete idiot. It had happened before, and I was going to make sure that it wouldn't happen again.

I sunk further into the soft cushions of my sofa and sighed heavily. That whole time that I was in Rose's apartment, there was one thought going through my head, _'what the hell are you doing? She's the girl of your dreams! You can't just give her up!' _

Unfortunately, that voice was overruled by a stronger, more sensible one. '_I'm waiting… I need to hear her say it…'_ it replied. And what was it I had been waiting for? I was waiting for her to stop making excuses, to stop saying things like, "no, you can't break up with me!" and "nothing's going on!"

I was waiting for something that I knew wouldn't come. "Adrian… you can't break up with me because I love you." Those three words could've saved the whole situation, and then I wouldn't be seething in my own apartment, I'd be sitting in Rose's. Chatting, laughing, and maybe staying for dinner. Things that couples should do.

Instead, I had stood by my guns and let her slip through my fingers… again. Without warning, my mind went reeling back to when Rose had come crying to me a month ago.

_The greatest invention ever - vodka. It numbs you to the world, drowns your sorrows, and makes you feel like everything will be alright. Sure, it tastes like nail varnish, but that can be easily ignored. I winced as the burning liquid slid down my throat, but quickly shook off the shudder that was imminent. The first sip was always like this, but after that…_

_Well, after that, you usually got too drunk to notice._

_It felt strange to be drunk for a particular reason. Usually it was because I was partying, numbing the after effects of spirit, or just getting smashed because I felt like it. Now, there was a cause. _

_Belikov was back._

_And that meant that I had lost my chance to finally win Rose over… again. I always seemed to lose out on her. Fair enough, I had asked her for one chance and she had agreed to give me a shot. But sometimes I just thought that her heart wasn't in it. I really did try my hardest for her. Sometimes though, I had to remind myself that we really didn't have all that much in common. What had drawn me to her that night at the ski lodge was her beauty and her fiery, sarcastic attitude. It was just _her_… she was so captivating, so amazing._

_And she was currently standing outside my door._

"_Adrian! Please let me in!" she sobbed, hammering her hand against the plank of wood that separated her from me._

_I jumped up and ran to the door, my drunkenness forgotten. She sounded distraught._

_Worse than that even… devastated._

"_Oh God, Rose… what happened?" I asked as I threw back the door to find her weeping breathlessly out in the corridor, shaking like a leaf in a breeze._

"_Come here…" I breathed, enveloping her in my arms and pulling her inside. Her red-rimmed brown eyes looked up at me over my arm._

"_Adrian… I've done something terrible…" Rose whispered brokenly._

_My automatic response would've been something sarcastic like, 'I'm sure I've done something twice as bad, Little Dhampir,' but, because I could feel the seriousness of the situation, I stayed silent._

_Rose collapsed onto the sofa but stayed as crushed up to her side as she could, like she was trying to put distance between us. I knew she was upset so I didn't let it phase me, and instead motioned for her to tell me what was wrong._

"_Adrian, I… This morning I… I mean…" she stuttered. "I went to see Dimitri."_

_I recoiled in shock and possibly started to choke. I only remember fragments of that horrible moment. "I thought he didn't want to see you?"_

"_He didn't…" she agreed. "I sort of… found a work around…"_

_That just made it ten times worse. He didn't even ask for her to come, she went looking for _him_._

"_Oh," I mouthed. "He upset you then?"_

_She nodded, crying harder. It was really starting to scare me – I'd never seen her like this._

"_I-I-I'm such a b-bad p-person…" she choked. _

"_No you're not…" I soothed. "Now, what happened?"_

"_I-I went to church, and he… he was there, so I sat beside him…"_

"_That's not so bad…" I told her, though I knew there was probably more._

_She shook her head firmly. "After… some talking, he said… he said…"_

"_He said…?" I encouraged, wondering what Belikov had told her to get her in such a state._

"_He said… 'I've given up on you. Love fades, mine has…'" she told me in a strangled whisper. I drew in a harsh breath that made me see stars. Two things occurred to me. One, I wanted to wring Belikov's neck with my bare hands, and two, it was quite obvious at this point that Rose loved him more than me, her boyfriend._

_Right then, I could've banished her from my sight. I could've told her to get stuffed, and go play happy families with Belikov. Hell, I could've done anything._

_But I didn't. Instead, I took her in my arms and soothed her gently. I smoothed her hair and assured her that Dimitri didn't know what he was missing. I told her that I loved her so much more than I ever had. I let her cry into my shirt until the tears ran dry. And then we just lay on the sofa, not talking, and enjoyed the silence. Finally Rose told me that she had to go for her shift._

"_Call me later, 'kay?" I called as she went out to the hallway to get her coat._

"_Sure," she replied, re-entering the room. "See you later."_

"_Bye… I love you." I told her, wrapping my arms around her waist and pulling her closer. She automatically tilted her head up and let our lips meet. This kiss, unlike most of our other ones, was soft and gentle, and sweet. It made me feel like everything was going to be alright in the world. Well, until Rose pulled away._

"_I really do have to go now…" she informed me with a small smile. My face fell as I realized that she hadn't replied to my declaration of love, to put it dramatically. Just before she shut the door, her grinning face appeared._

"_Oh, and Adrian? I love you too." And then she was gone._

_END FLASHBACK. _

Sadness flooded me once more. Why couldn't this one thing in my life go right? Why couldn't Rose love me as much as I loved her? Why did Belikov have to keep interfering?

Belikov. This wasn't over yet.

I couldn't let him take Rose away from me again. I loved her too much for that.

I had to find her before he could.

DPOV

Wonderment filled me. Had Rose loved me this whole time, and just not said anything? Had she been secretly pining for me as I had for her? So many unanswered questions, with only one person who could give me all the answers. I needed to talk to Rose.

That's when it occurred to me. Now was my chance to get her back. Adrian was probably off getting drunk somewhere, and, knowing Rose, she was away for a run. It was something she always did when she was angry, or sad, or just needed some time to think.

Soon, Adrian would realize that he had made a mistake, and go crawling back to his ex-girlfriend. I just needed to find her before that happened.

I took off down the stairs, because the elevator would take too long. The lobby was empty and I took advantage of that, not slowing down until I was right in the middle of Court. I desperately tried to think where Rose would run, and, coming up empty, I settled on waiting at the front entrance of our building.

I breathed in a heavy sigh when I saw her bob into view in full sports gear. I couldn't decide whether this was a good thing or a bad one.

_Oh well, _I thought, _here goes nothing._

"Roza!" I called as she neared. She looked up, but not just because of me. A glance over my shoulder revealed Adrian standing breathlessly in the open doorway of the building, having just shouted 'Rose!"at the same time as me.

This would not end well.

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><p><strong>What do we think? The next chapter is gonna be funny, I promise! :D<strong>

**Two things for you to do now...**

_**R E V I E W**_

**and**

_**V O T E!**_

**You wont know what i mean by 'vote' unless you read the first a/n btw... :P**

**Hope to hear from you all! :D**

**Annie x**


	3. Chapter 3

**Soooooo...um, guess what? I didnt fall down the toilet, get kidnapped by the child catcher or fall off the edge of the planet... okay, i cant hold it in any longer...**

**I'M SO SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING FOR LIKE FIVE MONTHS! oh god, this story was just so hard to write for a while there :/ i was seriously considering taking it down!**

**Anyway, THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU for reviewing your butts off! 21 REVIEWS! gotta say, i'm impressed! sooo, thanks to VampzRsexy, LuPeters, Dhampirgurl101, Nicia, XxDeadlyBlackRosexX, , demi, xXshortandsweetXx, Northmanlvr, PrincessRedfern, olivia williams, VAlover21, DXR, vampiregirl2014, shadowhuntergirl1011, Love-fades-mine-has-021, VampireGirl1200, Oppa, Book Lovin Teen and mParis! :D**

**Also, apologies for the length of this chapter (it's pretty short), but the next chappie and this one were originally just one, but i decided to split them :P**

**Finally, I knew exactly who I was dedicating this chapter to as soon as i read their review! I'd sort of forgotten what kind of story i wanted this to be, and reading their review reminded me and made me want to keep writing this. So, thanks a million to Book Lovin Teen, whose examples of DvA war helped this story get back on its feet! **

**So, now i'll let you get on with the chapter which, thankfully, is a little more humourous that the previous two :P**

**Enjoy,**

**~ARH**

**OH! I almost forgot! Adrian's famous dating proposal is featured in this chapter, so let's just pretend he didnt already write one for Rose, 'kay? :D**

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><p>DIMITRI VS. ADRIAN 3<p>

RPOV

Hearing those two voices at once would never equate to a good thing in my mind, especially not after breaking up with one and almost kissing the other.

For once in my life, Dimitri and Adrian were the last two people I wanted to see.

Although that wasn't what my body was telling me as I stopped by the front of my building, where they were standing side by side. My heart immediately picked up a startlingly rapid, erratic rhythm and my limbs didn't seem to want to move any more. Dimitri stood tall and imposing, his muscles taut and his face carefully blank. Adrian, just behind him, leaned against the wall lazily armed with his typical blasé grin and an unlit cigarette.

I opened my mouth to speak, but Adrian beat me to it. "Listen, little dhampir," he drawled coolly, though I could see he was more concerned than he was letting on, "I have places to be, but we need to talk." He cut Dimitri, who had just growled quietly through gritted teeth, an icy glare. "It won't take long, and I'm sure you have nothing better to be doing, anyway."

"As it happens," Dimitri said, straining to remain civil, "She just might have. Roza, I need to talk to you, too."

I glanced between them frantically. I knew they'd never liked each other—in the tying-each-other's-sneakers-together-and-putting-pink-hair-dye-in-the-other's-shampoo kind of way—but this was verging on planned assassinations and fights to the death and stuff like that. In other words, nothing good.

"I can't choose between you," I told them. "I'll talk to you both later. Now, if you'll excuse me," I cut between the two of them and pulled open the door, "I need to take a shower and get out of these clothes. Try not to kill each other while I'm gone. You're both big boys now, no need for petty bitch-fights."

As I stepped inside and headed for the elevator, I could've sworn I heard Adrian choke 'bitch-fights?' all high-pitched and incredulous, and Dimitri snickering quietly. I grinned, shook my head and stepped inside the elevator.

DPOV

Adrian shook his head, staring after Rose. "Bitch-fights," he repeated for what was about the third time. "Adrian Ivashkov does not bitch-fight. What a ridiculous claim to make."

I bit my lip and looked away. He didn't even know how stupid he sounded. I didn't take too kindly to Rose and her apparent 'comedy', either, but I didn't whine about it.

"So, what are we going to do about this, Ivashkov?" I asked, taking up a casual stance against the wall that matched his, and crossing my arms.

"Let her choose," he suggested smugly around his cigarette, which was hanging lazily from the corner of his mouth. "She'll pick me, what with me being her most recent beau."

"Beau?" I snorted. "Are you sure she didn't just go out with you so you'd leave her alone?"

His overconfident façade faltered, his hand, which was poised to light his cigarette, frozen in midair. I immediately felt guilty for striking such a low blow. I didn't like Adrian—I never had—but he didn't deserve that kind of abuse.

"At least I didn't leave her because I was too selfish to try and work things out," he shot back indifferently, his eyes crossed as he examined a piece of his hair, which had fallen down over his forehead. He flicked his head and levelled his gaze on me. "I'll tell you what, Belikov. I'll make you a deal."

I raised my eyebrows sarcastically. "It's not your lucky day, Ivashkov. I don't tend to make deals with gamblers. Maybe on a day that doesn't end in 'y'."

He chuckled. "I won't tell you what it is, then. It might've even helped you get Rose back, but if you don't want to know…" he shrugged and shot me an infuriatingly innocent smile. "What can you do?"

He began to walk away, and I found myself, against my will, stretching my arm out to stop him. "Adrian, wait." Inside my own head, I was screaming at myself for calling his bluff, but… what if he was telling the truth? My top priority was to somehow get Rose back, and he might just be able to help, though the chances were slim.

A grin pulled at the corner of Adrian's mouth as he turned. "Exactly." He resumed his slouch up against the wall and steepled his fingers. "I have a proposition to make." He paused dramatically, and I rolled my eyes. "We each have to do everything in our power to win the love of our fair maiden, Rose." I shook my head in despair at his stupidity. "The loser has to give her up completely to the winner."

"What are the rules?" I asked suspiciously.

Adrian's eyes sparkled with mischief. "There are no rules."

Good God. Adrian needed strict rules to restrain his overpowering character at the best of times, especially when Rose was involved. I'd really have to up my game to even begin to have a chance at beating him—I knew he could be pretty creative when he wanted to be.

I held out my hand, though every part of me was screaming not to. But I wouldn't give Rose up. Not now. "You have a deal. When do we start?"

Adrian stared at my hand distastefully and blew cigarette smoke in my face. "You'd better start thinking," he called as he walked away, "because we start immediately." A quick wink over his shoulder, and he was gone.

"Damn it," I swore. For the first time in my life, I found I'd have to follow Ivashkov's advice. And I knew abiding by anything he deemed sensible would end with a bang. "Bring it on," I thought, and followed the path Rose had taken minutes before, back up to our floor.

"Gah!" I growled, hurling another balled-up sheet of paper across the room. It rolled around the edge of the wastepaper basket before dropping in, joining many of its predecessors. I'd been making lists all day: lists of romantic things I could do to come out on top over Ivashkov and win Rose's heart back.

I wasn't making much headway. Not much at all.

Finally I stood up, loosening the kinks in my muscles and knocking assorted pieces of stationery onto the floor. I decided I'd go and pay Rose a visit, seeing as she was the only person—in America, anyway—who could calm my frazzled nerves. It was strange to think she was just next door, and only a thin wall separated us from each other. I yearned for there to be no wall, to have nothing between us… not even an inch of space. I wanted her as close as humanely possible, but that would never happen if I let Adrian win this stupid bet.

I left my apartment, but something taped to Rose's door stopped me from entering hers. A rose was tied to a sheet of paper, which was addressed to _'my little dhampir'_.

"Adrian," I muttered, and scanned the page to see what it was.

_My little dhampir,_

_ This is a dating proposal. I don't know what else to say here, other than I made a mistake earlier. I think you should pick me over Belikov because:_

_1. I'll give up cigarettes unless I really, _really_ need one._

_2. Ditto for alcohol._

_3. Who am I kidding? I'll cut down… a little…_

_4. I'll unleash romantic surprises every week, such as an impromptu picnic, roses or a trip to Paris—but not actually any of those things because now they're not surprises._

_5. I can walk your dreams—I mean, come on, who else do you know that can do that?_

_6. I'll try my best to get my great-aunt to warm up to you. She'll listen to me; I'm her favourite great nephew._

_7. I'm just a generally awesome guy._

_8. I'm a stunningly sexy royal Moroi… what more can a girl ask for?_

_9. I'm hot—not as hot as you—but I'm still hot… wait, maybe I said that already…_

_10. I'm rich too; no more taking you to McDonalds on a date! I've decided to overindulge and upgrade to Chinese takeaway! Kidding, by the way… McDonalds is way better._

_11. I'm irresistible. So much, in fact, that I wonder why I'm writing this. You'll pick me anyway… because I'm irresistible. _

_12. I gave you money to go to Russia… and look what you did! You brought _him_ back. Bad form, Rose. Bad form._

_13. I tell awesome jokes, some of which you've had the honour of experiencing first hand._

_14. I'm punny, too… (See what I did there?)_

_15. We're made for each other, and you know it._

_16. I want to annoy my aunt—and your mom and dad, come to think of it._

_17. I'll shower you with gifts, for example, perfume (even though I don't particularly like it… if I could bottle your scent and present it to you, I would… yes, even after you've just come in from skiing). _

_18. I am spontaneous and romantic._

_20. I just demonstrated my spon—spontinaity—spontineaity (…you get what I mean) by missing out number 19! Now, that's what I call spontaneous!_

_21. I know you secretly want me._

_22. You fantasise about me, too._

_23. I'm not ten feet tall, like _certain_ individuals whose names I shall not mention… *cough* D-I-M-I-T-R-I *cough*_

_24. If you don't accept my proposal, I'll just compel you to like me. Then we're all happy! …Kidding. I know I don't need to compel you._

_25. I'm a really, really, really, really, mega-uber-super good kisser!_

_26. We can have little-little dhampirs and mini Adrians!_

_27. …Too soon?_

_28. I'm hot! Pretty sure I haven't mentioned that yet._

_29. I want to finish what we couldn't last time… if you know what I mean…_

_30. See my shirt? It's made of boyfriend material. …As is its owner._

_31. I healed that plant once. Didn't you find that gallant and heroic and stuff? I did. In fact, I think I fell slightly in love with myself for being so selfless and valiant._

_32. I am a major badass, as demonstrated in my last point._

_33. You're hot. I'm hot. …We should totally get together some time. _

_34. I have… what's the word… totally _awe-inspiring_ hair. This 'do has its own _religion_. Or, well, it should. People stop walking in the street and say 'look at that guy's awesome hair'. I know they do. …don't they?_

_35. I'm rich._

_36. You promised you'd give me a chance… I blew the first one, so, uh, I want another one… Pretty please?_

_37. You're a badass too. Badasses belong with other badasses._

_38. I'm super intelligent, too. E=mc² and Adrian + Rose=awesome. Oh, and I'm really sexy too._

_39. I moved away from my awesome (not so great) bachelor pad (my parents' house) in the City (at Court) where I spent my days partying and performing other illicit activities (drinking myself silly and whining about college) to come and live with you at the Academy._

_40. I'm hot. You know I am._

_41. Lissa would tell you to pick me. She likes me. *In Lissa's voice* "You should totally pick Adrian, Rose! He's a badass with awesome hair!_

_42. I'm a pretty convincing impressionist, too, as verified in the previous point. Is there no end to my array of amazing talents?_

_43. I'm a poet, too. Read on, fair maiden, for my adaptation of the famous 'roses are red'!_

_Rose is in bed,_

_Adrian is too_

_They have some fun, and_

…_make a blanket fort!_

_See? What'd I tell you? Amazing. I might write you a Haiku sometime, if you're lucky._

_44. My mom says I'm cute. But then again, she said that in reply to, "mom, you'll still do my laundry after I move out, right? I'm pretty sure I put the clothes in the dishwasher last time…" so I don't know. But I think I'm pretty adorable._

_45. …I'm like that cute little puppy in the pet store. Woof…_

_46. No, I think I'm more of a bunny rabbit… I do quite like bunnies—playboy bunnies, that is._

_47. Actually, I'm definitely a chinchilla kind of guy. Can you buy chinchillas at the pet store? Aren't they just like huge, mutant hamsters?_

_48. Anyway, I'm getting off topic. I'm hot, by the way._

_49. And I said I would cut down on my vices for you. Rose, this is serious (I know, it comes as a shock to me, too). When I give cigarettes up for someone, they've got to be something special. And, you know, you are pretty special. I've never met a person who's promised to break so many faces…and kept so many promises._

_50. Last of all, you should pick me because, well… you might be surrounded by clouds, but you'll always be like sunshine to me._

_There you have it. Fifty—wait, forty nine; I missed out nineteen for spontaneity (yes, I Googled the spelling)—reasons why I want you to date me (again)._

_ With love,_

_ Your awesome, hot, super intelligent, badass could-be boyfriend with awesome hair whose face hasn't been permanently damaged yet… Adrian xxx_

I had to clench my fist to keep from tearing the letter off the door and ripping it into tiny pieces. Adrian was fighting hard for this. I was surprised he'd actually been able to sit still long enough to write this. Usually, I would suspect he'd paid someone else to do it for him, but I couldn't even entertain that notion in this case. His arrogant, satirist personality leaked from every word.

Maybe I would've hidden the letter, maybe I wouldn't have. The latter would've had implications, but Adrian had been very clear about the absence of rules in this bizarre game. I made a mental note to, should I ever feel like writing Rose a letter, deliver it to her personally in case of any unwanted interventions from a certain royal Moroi who was really starting to get on my nerves.

She was there in the hall suddenly, with different clothes on and wet hair. She had her arms wrapped around a small shopping bag. "Dimitri? What are you doing? What's—?"

I glanced between the letter on the door and Rose's exceptionally confused expression. "You'll realise when you read it!" I called as I jogged off down the hall. "You'll be seeing me again before the day's out, believe me!"

Ivashkov had given me an idea. But I wasn't going to write Rose a dating proposal. I, unlike Adrian, couldn't rely on charm and unfunny gags to fill the space.

No, I would write Rose something more meaningful. A love letter.

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><p><strong>Right, love letter next chapter then... which will hopefully come sooner than this one!<strong>

**So now, let's:**

**1. REVIEW! You guys know the drill: click the link, and tell me what you think (adrian-esque, and totally impromptu! But still terrible!)**

**2. VOTE for your man... Will it be tall, dark and handsome Dimitri? Or sarcastic, seductive Adrian? (yeesh, i'm in a really corny mood tonight! ...and yes, i did stay up 'til now -2a.m- writing this!)**

**3. SUGGEST IDEAS! I know what's happening next chapter, but after that, I'm screwed... suggestions are welcome and if i use your idea i'll make sure to credit you in the a/n!**

**Thankyouuu,**

**Annie :D**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hi! I'm finally back:/ sorry, i know i've disappeared for months, but I'M ALIVE NOW...! YAY!**

**Anyways T.T This is the chapter you've aaaaaall been waiting for... chapter four of Dimitri Vs. Adrian! Yeeeeah buddyyyy!:D**

**Thanks to my reviewers... Potatohead98, TheOne, LuPeters, Book Lovin Teen, PrincessRedfern, VAlover21, VampGirl4EverandEver, MsRoseBelikov1, FireOpals, shadow-kissed angel, Anonymous and Samwysesr XD**

**This chapter has a little bit of humour in it, but it's mostly fluff. I think that's how the story in general's gonna be-Dimitri's mostly gonna be all serious and sensitive and romantic, and Adrian's gonna be the funny, lighthearted one, though both guys will get the chance to be funny or romantic or whatever when the story allows it:D**

**Have fun reading!**

**Annie:D**

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><p>DIMITRI VS ADRIAN 4<p>

RPOV

"You'll see me before the day's out, believe me!" Dimitri called as he tore off down the corridor, back the way I'd just come.

"Men," I muttered. Dimitri and Adrian were both acting so weird. A few days ago, the former hated me and I was going out with the latter. Then, Dimitri suddenly went all cheerful, making me suspect he still had feelings for me, and Adrian broke up with me. Ten seconds later, he turned all repentant.

It was time to call in reinforcements.

I pulled a red rose and the paper that had caught Dimitri's attention off the door, and unlocked the door to my apartment. It felt like the only place I wasn't under attack from the two men in my life.

After settling myself on the couch, I pulled out my cell and called the only person equipped to help me deal with my latest Bridget Jones style disaster.

She promised she'd be round in fifteen minutes tops, and rang off. I used the extra time to read through the page I'd banished to the table in the hall when I came in.

I went to retrieve it and, after skimming it quickly, was unsurprised to see it had been written in Adrian's handwriting. I took it back to the couch and started to read, becoming more and more amused with each point he made. Adrian was so unpredictable; I found myself wondering what the hell was coming next.

I was outright laughing, complete with cheek ache and tears in my eyes, when Lissa let herself in. She approached me like I was some kind of circus freak, taking the armchair opposite the couch.

"Rose?" Her tone was wary. "Are you… alright?"

"Fine," I gasped, holding my poor, abused stomach, whose muscles were twitching spasmodically from my laughing fit. I set down the page—which I'd now figured out was a dating proposal—without reading the rest. "But I have a big problem."

"How big? Like, my-dad-is-a-mobster big? Or there's-a-random-tall-guy-spying-on-me-through-my-window big?" she joked.

I took a swipe at her head, ignoring her jibes. "Bigger than those two put together."

"_Bigger_? Like my-mom-gave me-a-black-eye big?" she exclaimed, her eyes stretched comically wide.

"That _is_ pretty big," I agreed, grimacing as I remembered the monstrosity of a black eye my mom had given me senior year, _right_ before we were supposed to leave for the ski resort in Idaho. "But this is worse." I took a deep breath. "This falls into the I-almost-kissed-Dimitri-and-Adrian-saw-and-he-broke-up-with-me-but-now-they-both-want-to-talk-to-me-and-I-think-they-both-have-feelings-for-me-and-I'm-so-damn-screwed category of big."

Lissa's mouth fell open. I waited for her to recover, but she didn't. She stared at me blankly, like her brain had spontaneously imploded the second I finished talking.

I took her silence as an invitation to elaborate. "See, I volunteered to help Dimitri move his stuff to his new apartment because he got reassigned this morning. Reassigned to the apartment next door, as luck would have it," I explained grimly, indicating the shared wall that separated our apartments.

"He seemed really glad to see me and we bantered a bit. We were fighting over who should carry which box of his things, and I ran ahead to get the last one. When we were half way across Court, he snuck up behind me and took it."

"That doesn't sound so bad, apart from the fact that it sounds like you two were full-on flirting," Lissa said matter-of-factly.

"I liked your opinion better when you were too shocked to speak," I muttered, which made her laugh. I abruptly sobered up to continue the story, standing up so I could properly explain what had happened.

"Dimitri was holding the box from behind me," I told her, holding an invisible box away from me to demonstrate. "And I was trapped in the middle—in his arms. I turned around, and I sort of… you know… I mean, his chest was right here," I held a hand up a centimetre from my face, "And I just started to… to lean in… and then he did too. But then he lifted the box away and carried on like nothing had happened."

"I can tell by your face that that's not the worst part," Lissa observed gravely.

I nodded. "Adrian came round after that. He said he'd seen me with Dimitri and that we just weren't working out. And then he started shouting, something to the effect of: 'I'm sick of living in his shadow. You've got him on a pedestal, and me in your arms.'" I rubbed my arms as I waited for Lissa to react.

She winced. "Then what happened?"

"This is where things get weird. I went for a run earlier and, when I came back, Dimitri and Adrian were waiting for me. They _both_ wanted to talk, apparently. I didn't say yes to either of them, came up here and had a shower. Then later, I went to get some groceries and came back and _this_ was stuck to the door!" I cracked a smile as I remembered the dating proposal. "Dimitri was reading it, and he ran away shouting about how I would see him later when he saw me. That's when I called you. My tolerance of weird couldn't take any more without backup."

"Wow," was all Lissa said. "You _have_ had a busy day."

"Strangest day of my existence," I agreed as a thought came to me. "Can we just confirm that this is in fact planet earth, and I haven't been transported to some parallel universe where really weird things happen?"

"No, you're right where you're supposed to be, don't worry," Lissa replied, humouring me. "Now, what are you going to do about this?"

"I was hoping you could help me with that. First, though, I want to read you this dating proposal Adrian left. It's hilarious."

Lissa settled further into the couch, looking a little doubtful. She knew as well as I did that Adrian was unpredictable and, like me, didn't know what to expect.

She was soon doubled over, laughing so hard she almost choked a few times. I had to leap across the couch to her rescue—what kind of guardian would I be if I let my charge die from _laughter_ on my watch? I probably wouldn't even get a job cleaning toilets with _that_ on my résumé.

I stopped when I'd almost reached the end. "I haven't read this far yet," I explained when Lissa looked up questioningly at my silence.

"Forty four," I read. "My mom says I'm cute. But then again, she said that in reply to, 'Mom, you'll still do my laundry after a move our, right? I'm pretty sure I put the clothes in the dishwasher last time…' so I don't know. But I think I'm pretty adorable."

We fell about laughing thinking about Adrian and his misadventures with the dishwasher. If I'd heard it from anyone else, I would think they'd made it up, but it seemed so entirely plausible coming from Adrian.

"Forty five. …I'm like that cute little puppy in the pet store. Woof…"

More giggles.

"Forty six. No, I think I'm more of a bunny rabbit… I do quite like bunnies—Playboy bunnies, that is."

"Oh, Adrian," Lissa sighed, shaking her head though her eyes glinted with amusement.

"Wait 'til you hear what he says next," I muttered. "Forty seven. Actually, I'm definitely a chinchilla kind of guy. Can you buy chinchillas at the pet store? Aren't they just like huge, mutant hamsters?"

Lissa's head fell into her hands. "That man."

"Anyway, I'm getting off topic. I'm hot, by the way," I read. "That's number forty eight."

"Funny, I don't think he mentioned that before," I mused. Lissa had a good laugh at that.

"Forty nine," I continued. "And I said I would cut down on my vices for you. Rose, this is serious (I know, it comes as a shock to me, too). When I give cigarettes up for someone, they've got to be something special. And, you know, you are pretty special."

"Aww, that's sweet," Lissa said dreamily.

"It's not finished," I sighed and quoted the last part. "I've never met a person

who's promised to break so many faces…and kept so many promises."

"True." Lissa giggled. "Is that it?"

"No, there's one more," I told her. "Number fifty—oh."

"What is it?"

I felt my expression softening. "Last of all, you should pick me because, well… you might be surrounded by clouds, but you'll always be like sunshine to me."

I didn't read what the conclusion said. I didn't think I could. My voice had retreated into the depths of my chest and brought with it a funny sort of ache. All the way through the proposal, it had seemed like Adrian was trying to mask the hurt he felt over our failed relationship with bravado. I could detect this because I did it a lot too.

But that last line had tripped me up. When I'd started to read his proposal, I'd thought it would all be written in his easy, amusing prose. I knew Adrian did have real feelings for me, but it was just his way of things to make it all into some kind of joke.

I hadn't expected him to write anything so sweet. I immediately flashed back to the first time he'd said it to me—the day I was royally pissed off about getting Christian instead of Lissa for field experience. He'd been trying to cheer me up in that funny way of his, and we'd been talking about my aura—or, well, he'd been talking, and I'd been snapping at him to shut up and leave me alone.

I realised then, something I hadn't noticed before. When I'd been with Dimitri earlier, all I could think about was how much I loved him and how I was only going out with Adrian to fill the hole Dimitri had left in my heart.

Now I found myself thinking that wasn't entirely true. Sure, I had loved Dimitri more than I loved life itself at one point. I would probably always love him, in a way. But having said that, I loved Adrian too. And not just the pretend love I had because I'd promised him a chance with me. No, somewhere along the way, when I'd been walking the dangerous line of letting Adrian think I loved him more than I actually did…

I'd somehow fallen for him.

And that just made my situation worse. Here I was, with feelings for two great, gorgeous guys who couldn't be more opposite: one charismatic yet caring; the other powerful yet sensitive. The worst part was that they both apparently reciprocated my feelings, so ultimately, I'd have to choose one of them and break the other's heart.

"Oh god," I groaned. "Lissa, this is worse than I thought."

She nodded, like she'd already come to that conclusion. "How are you going to decide?" she asked gently.

"I have no idea!" I cried, burying my face in my hands and hoping everything would just go away. "The guys—I think they're both trying to impress me. They're going to go up against each other to get me, I guess. First Adrian's dating proposal, and then Dimitri saying he'd come see me later. I don't know whether to tell them to cut it out or let them go ahead."

"Let them do it," Lissa said. "You need all the help you can get if you have to choose one."

"You're right."

We sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes. That shattered however, when Lissa jumped up. "I have to go," she said apologetically. "I have dinner at the Zeklos's in an hour."

"Have fun," I snorted, thinking of Jesse.

"I'll try. Thank God Christian'll be there."

I didn't answer, just waved goodbye as she hurried out and shut the door quietly behind her.

And so began a very boring evening. I watched TV from the time Lissa left until after midnight, contenting myself with watching human kids' morning cartoons. After that, I watched a few reruns of a cheesy sitcom.

And why was I doing this? Because I wanted to see if Dimitri showed up.

When it got to two o'clock, I realised he wasn't coming, but I was so comfortable on the couch that I decided to just stay and watch the rest of the programme I was currently watching. My eyes were stinging a little, but that was a common feeling for a guardian. We sometimes had to go for long periods of time without sleep. I'd done it before, so it would be no problem to stay awake a little while longer.

Okay, so I fell asleep on the couch. I must've dropped off two minutes after promising myself I could stay awake, because I couldn't remember how the episode of the comedy I'd been watching ended.

Thanks to my late night escapades, it was now well past midday. I felt groggy and disoriented and my back ached from sleeping on the couch. Cursing, I staggered to the bathroom mirror to scare myself awake with my potentially ogre-like morning looks.

My hair looked like road kill; my eyes were wide and red-rimmed, and don't even get me started on the ugly, bruise-like rings underneath them.

I turned away from the mirror and started the shower. I hadn't gone for my morning run yet, but I totally wasn't against having two showers—one before and one after.

I yanked a brush through my wet hair after I'd washed and brushed on minimal makeup. Usually I didn't wear makeup running, but then I usually ran when it was too early for anyone else to be up. Today, when it was almost lunch time, I felt the need to look more presentable.

I wandered around the room, picking up clothes to wear: a pair of navy calf-length sweat shorts, an orange muscle vest and a dark zip-up jacket. Perching on the edge of my bed, I pulled on my trainers and bounced up, pulling my hair into a ponytail as I bounded out of the apartment, locking the door behind me.

I ran hard for over an hour. It helped clear my head of yesterday's events, though I knew today would probably be just as crazy, if not more so. The thought terrified me, and kept me out running for even longer than usual.

When I arrived back at my building, I was drenched in sweat and probably stank. I couldn't wait to just get up to my apartment for a shower. But something caught my eye.

Just inside the building's front door is a long line of pigeon holes. They serve as mailboxes to all the guardians who live here. They probably should have the proper boxes with individual locks like most apartment blocks have, but we don't have an actual mailman around here. If you want to post a letter, you send someone over to deliver it—and it wouldn't be very practical to have the whole of Court walking around with the key to my mailbox. So they just kept the system simple and assigned every tenant a pigeon hole for their mail.

Being a new guardian and having my friends living a stone's throw away meant my mailbox was usually empty, save for the odd notice or piece of junk mail.

Today, there was one letter inside.

It was in a stiff, pale yellow envelope, which immediately ruled out all the possibilities I'd been considering. It wasn't addressed to anyone, which made things even more confusing.

Too excited to wait, I slid my fingers along the seam and opened the envelope, wondering what on earth it was and who it could possibly be from.

I unfolded the page and took it in carefully. It was from Dimitri, dated yesterday and printed in his small, tidy script.

Intrigued, I began to read.

DPOV

"_Love always, Dimitri_," I murmured, signing the letter off. I added one kiss below my name too, recalling how Adrian had put three on his dating proposal.

I sat back, relieved the task I'd spent all day trying to accomplish was finished. I wasn't convinced I had a particular way with words, but I thought I'd put myself across alright. Writing a love letter was difficult: all my feelings and the things I wanted so badly to say floated at the forefront of my mind, but I had no idea how to put them into words. It was both frustrating and satisfying—finishing it, that is. Frustrating because I couldn't accurately convey my love for Rose, but satisfying because I'd been able to better map out my own thoughts by putting them down on paper.

Now came the difficult part. First, I had to sneak down and slip the letter into her mailbox, but that wasn't the worrying part: sleep was. Once I knew it was at all possible for her to read the letter, I would never get to sleep.

I rubbed my tired eyes and raised my arms above my head in a catlike stretch. My joints cracked in protest at my immobility for the last—how many hours?

I dragged my gaze to the clock on the oven. The red letters swam in and out of focus, dancing and fizzing to the point where, when I managed to read them, I thought I'd got it wrong.

"Five fifteen a.m.?" I muttered to no one in particular. "Wow. I've really outdone myself."

I sealed the envelope, pen poised to sign Rose's name on the front. I decided against it, figuring it would add to the surprise of getting the letter—and I knew just how much Rose loved surprises.

I took the stairs down, fearing the elevator would be too noisy. The lobby was dark and deserted, as I'd thought it would be. There was no guardian posted at the desk, which was unusual but not entirely suspicious. I was grateful for their absence, anyway.

After leaving the letter in Rose's pigeon hole, I crept back up the stairs, passing her apartment on the way back to my own. It was a welcome coincidence that I'd ended up next door to her: she'd been the last guardian before me to be assigned permanent living quarters at Court.

As I locked my door behind me and shut off the lights, I recalled what Rose had pointed out earlier: all of the apartments in the building were identical. Almost. The architect who'd designed the building obviously hadn't been paid millions to come up with the floor plans. Every separate apartment was a perfect square, with each room strategically squished inside to make the most of the least amount of space.

My front door opened onto an open plan living room-slash-hall, with a little kitchenette built into corner directly to the left of the door. Past that, in the back left corner of the apartment, was a tiled step up into a small, plain bathroom that also opened into the only bedroom, in the back right corner. It took up the most space in the apartment and was simple and painted in a bland shade of beige.

Rose's apartment, as she'd realised earlier, was identical to mine. What she hadn't noted, however, was that one was flipped. So Rose's bedroom, sitting room and front door were all on the left side of her apartment, and the kitchen and bathroom were on the right.

It was this that bothered me as I quickly undressed and climbed into bed. Mine was tight against the wall separating our apartments; it had been that way when I moved in. What I wondered was if Rose's bed was also against this wall. Then we were essentially centimetres apart, without being able to actually touch.

For some reason, this troubled me more than it should've. I hated being so tantalisingly close to Rose without being able to reach out and pull her into my arms.

I stayed up and thought about that for a long time. I'd lulled myself into a glazed sort of half-consciousness somewhere between waking and sleeping, without actually going to sleep. My alarm going off at eight almost gave me a heart attack.

Usually I didn't get tired unless I hadn't slept in days. Usually nothing surprised me, least of all an alarm clock. Usually I never stayed up to five a.m. unless I had a night shift. Usually I had no problem falling asleep as soon as I had the opportunity to.

It seemed nothing was _usual_ with Rose back in my life.

I rolled out of bed and took a long, hot shower. It helped me wake myself up a little. With my hair still wet, I pulled on clean jeans and a black t-shirt. I left my duster hanging over the back of a chair. It was too warm for leather indoors.

Breakfast was a simple affair of cereal which I'd brought from my old apartment, knowing it would tide me over until today. I made a mental note to go grocery shopping later.

And then I just waited around. I hadn't been scheduled for a shift today because of my move, so I had nothing to pass the time.

It was after midday when I finally heard Rose's door open. But I stayed exactly where I was. I knew what she was doing: she did it every morning. I used to see her run past my old apartment from the window sometimes, if I was up early enough.

Sure enough, she appeared beneath my window, which faced out the back of the building, in her running gear. It looked like she was heading out to the east side of Court, which was a lot less populated than the west side.

I went off to make lunch, accompanied by my third cup of coffee of the day. I almost missed Rose when she lapped back around the building a few hours later, about to come back inside. I left my empty dishes on the table and took the stairs down to the lobby, where her attention had just been drawn to her mailbox.

I didn't want to make myself known and let her know I'd written the letter before she actually had a chance to read it. I just wanted to see what her reaction to it was. And not the reaction she had in front of me, Lissa, Adrian or anyone else. Her private reaction, the one that showed what she _really_ felt.

She opened the letter carefully and began to read. I realised I was holding my breath, but made no moves to rectify this. All my attention was on Rose.

First came the smile. It was slow and measured, like she was just starting to get what was going on. It tipped up first one side of her mouth and then the other until she was grinning to herself. The grin was wistful, maybe even a little bashful—the way someone might be after getting paid a compliment they thought they weren't worthy of.

Her eyes turned thoughtful and dreamy the more she read. At one point she fell to one side and leaned back against the pigeon holes with her eyes closed, emitting a drawn out, contented kind of sigh. The letter was clutched to her chest.

She pulled it back and continued to read it, her eyes drinking in the lines I'd spent all night writing. When she appeared to have finished reading, she reached up and gently ran her finger along the bottom of the page.

"_Love always, Dimitri_," she breathed, quoting my sign-off.

I moved away from my hiding place before she could see me and stole back up to my apartment. Now I waited, let the letter sink in for a few hours, and maybe she'd come see me about it later.

Regardless of the rest, the most difficult part of my plan had come off flawlessly.

RPOV

I waited for a few hours in a daze before I decided it was around about the right time to seek Dimitri out. Any earlier would not be considered 'cool'.

He, of course, was in his apartment, like always. I knocked the door and he answered almost immediately, like he'd been waiting for me. I realised with a jolt that he probably had. And at the same time, I was next door, counting down the minutes until it would be acceptable to come see _him_.

"Hi." My voice came out in an uncharacteristic squeak. I cleared my throat immediately. "Can we… talk?"

"Sure." Dimitri appeared calm and composed as ever, though I sensed his nervousness in the way his hand shook slightly when he closed the door and how his eyes couldn't settle on one thing for more than a few seconds. He led me to the couch and disappeared into the kitchen. "You want a drink?" he asked from the doorway.

"Whatever you're having," I replied, still clutching his letter in my hands. I studied the paper and realised I'd left deep creases where I'd been holding it, reading and re-reading it, for the last few hours.

He re-appeared a few minutes later with two mugs of hot chocolate—doubled, of course. Even if it had been scorching hot outside, it probably still would've been his first choice of beverage. Hot chocolate was one of our 'things'.

I noticed Dimitri wasn't wearing his duster when he sat down. Just his usual jeans and a black t-shirt. I figured he wouldn't wear it until he was going outside. It was pretty warm indoors today.

"So, I guess I know what you want to talk about," he said slowly, blowing gently and scattering the steam curling from his mug.

"Err… yeah. This letter…"

His eyes closed. I couldn't really read his expression because he was using his hot chocolate to hide the lower half of his face. "I'm sorry if I took things too far. I was just being honest."

"No, no!" I exclaimed with a start. Some of the hot chocolate sloshed over the rim of the mug and splattered my jeans. "It's not that. The opposite, actually. It was… really sweet."

His eyebrows pulled together but, to my relief, his eyes opened. "Sweet?" Dimitri's tone was sceptical, like he didn't believe I was telling the truth.

"You have this way of saying things…" I trailed off dreamily, but quickly snapped out of it when I heard what he said next.

"I watched you read it," he said quietly, gripping his hot chocolate like its warmth was the only thing keeping him sane. "You looked… happy."

"I was happy," I replied, just as gently. It came as something of a shock to hear that Dimitri had seen my unbridled reaction to his letter. I couldn't play it cool now: he'd seen the whole episode from start to finish. I knew though, that if I'd been the sender, I would want to see what reception my letter got too.

"As you probably already guessed, I loved the letter. Really. And I wanted to say thank you—for taking the time to write it and for feeling that way, I guess."

"You don't need to thank me for loving you, Roza," Dimitri joked gently, his eyes soft and amused.

"There was one thing missing," I blurted out. His comment about love had completely disarmed me of my think-before-you-speak mechanism, apparently. "From the letter. One thing you did wrong."

"What's that?" Dimitri asked, frowning.

My voice was quiet when I spoke—a whisper, almost. "Your voice. When I was reading it, I could hear you and your personality marking every word as something you'd written, but it wasn't the same as actually hearing you say it. That's where you messed up. It isn't the same when it's not your voice telling me I'm beautiful and that you love me," I explained, quoting small pieces from the letter.

Dimitri stared at me openly for a few seconds. Finally he said, without taking his eyes off me, "The whole reason I wrote a letter was because I can't think straight when I'm near you, therefore making it impossible to draft an impromptu romantic speech." There was a hint of joking in his voice, but his face remained open and tender.

"Read it to me, comrade. Read me the letter," I whispered, passing it over to him. He unfolded it carefully and his gaze turned inward, like he was retreating back among the feelings that had surrounded him when he'd first wrote the letter.

This is what it said.

* * *

><p><strong>HAHAHA, I'M SO MEAN!<strong>

**I'm debating whether or not to actually write a love letter for next chapter-if you guys really want to read it, let me know, but bear in mind it's damn difficult to write a love letter from a twenty five year old Russian guy when in reality you're a fourteen year old irish girl! Haha!:D Really, though, if it's something you guys want to see next chapter, I'll try write one!**

**Also, for all you team Adrian readers out there... GET VOTING! Dimitri's leading at the minute with almost double the votes! And to you team Dimitri guys, keep up the good work!**

**I have a question to ask... is a fight considered funny? if there was a little DimitrixAdrian wrestling in future chapters, would that be a good thing or a bad thing? Just wondering;)**

**I had something else to say but i dont remember what it was:( so I guess I'll finish with this:**

**Get voting!**

**Annie:D**


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